


drown it out

by FlashThroughLight



Series: DBH Witcher Verse [2]
Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game), Wiedźmin | The Witcher (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Anxiety, Established Relationship, Implied Sexual Content, M/M, Witcher AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-02
Updated: 2019-01-02
Packaged: 2019-10-03 02:35:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,030
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17275481
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FlashThroughLight/pseuds/FlashThroughLight
Summary: As a Witcher, there are times when Gavin needs to drown out the world. Having a certain mage around helps - and occasionally Gavin can repay in kind.





	drown it out

**Author's Note:**

> Before you read, I _very highly recommend_ looking at the image that inspired this fic, which you can find on Twitter [here by @guilty_gil](https://twitter.com/guilty_gil/status/1072169652187553794) so you can understand my thirst.
> 
> So many thanks to Tirrathee for not only showing me the image that prompted this idea, but also for helping me along the way and calling me out on my bullshit. You're an amazing enabler.

The water was a way for him to dampen his senses. Every moment he was on edge, his sixth sense always reaching out. When underwater, it would still feel around, but felt like it was lagging. Closing his eyes helped as well. They weren't able to latch onto the slightest movement if they were closed.

Outsiders might think that Gavin liked to bathe, but that wasn't it at all. It was a way for the world around him to slow down, for his senses to stop being so hyper focused all the time. While he had grown to live with his abilities, sometimes Gavin just needed to drown out the rest of the world.

There was such a thing as sensory overload and it made Gavin's head reel from time to time.

He'd learn to accept the full extent of his abilities over time, Hank always said. At first, Gavin believed him. The old Witcher had been around for so long that he was an authority on all  secrets of their trade.

Except it had been over two decades and Gavin still found himself overwhelmed at times. If the opportunity arose, as he travelled and after every fulfilled contract, Gavin would seek out water. Be it the ocean, a river, or a bath. Not one for modesty, Gavin always stripped down completely, even while out in nature. Wet clothing was annoying to travel around in and undressing was another way for him to focus on himself rather than the world around him. He'd feel the water enveloping him as he sank down in it. Gavin tended to stay underwater as long as he physically could. Depending on the day he'd only submerge himself once, but he could easily spend half the day in the water if he really needed it.

Today Gavin was already on his third go underwater. He’d spent the better part of the day before tracking down a Royal Griffin and then he'd waited for the beast to return to its nest. This one in particular had taken to decorating it with everything from carts to rocks to cows to people. Gavin needed to stay downwind so the Griffin wouldn't catch his scent, and spent a few lovely hours breathing the nest’s odour before the beast returned.

The odour was an onslaught to his sense. Now Gavin was clearing his mind.

His body still sung from a successful and clean kill, but it had taken a sharp edge. He just needed to calm it down and ground himself.

Almost funny that he did that in the water.

This lake was small and he already checked to make sure there wasn't anything unsavoury around. There was nothing in the water other than fish and waterfowl.

He'd have taken care of anything else otherwise.

As always, Gavin waded into the water until he could still stand easily, should his time be interrupted, but deep enough that he could submerge himself fully. The balmy Temerian summer warmed the surface of the lake to a nice temperature, just warm enough that his body didn't break out into shudders, but still cooler than standing in the full force of the sun.

Perhaps he’d stay for another hour or so. Gavin was sure that he’d be better then. Well enough, in any case, to gather his things and start making his way to another town to look for his next contract. This last one filled his pockets quite nicely, but he was saving up for a custom crafted silver blade. Everything had already been discussed and now all he needed was the money to get it commissioned. His current one had been damaged in a fight and now the weight was off. It would be better to get a new one rather than have this one be repaired and possibly still be off.

A prickle in the back of his neck and a low crackling sound alerted him to a new presence. For anything else he would have immediately pushed himself up out of the water again, but this was a sound that he was pretty familiar with. He remained underwater for another minute before standing up. He took a deep breath and ran a hand through his hair to keep water from dripping down his face, then turned to look at the shore, his cat-like eyes immediately adjusting to the brightness of the sun.

A figure wearing a black and white coat was standing at the edge of the lake, his arms held behind his back. He stood there, not saying a word even as their gazes locked.

Gavin bit back a sigh and started making his way to the water’s edge. His visitor was just going to stand there and judge him otherwise.

As Gavin got back to shore, he could practically taste the remnants of teleportation magic still in the air. A favoured mode of transportation for his visitor.

Gavin walked by him and up to where he’d placed his belongings. He went through his pack to pull out the small towel he kept with him. Normally he would’ve let the sun dry him off, but that clearly wasn’t an option anymore. He dried his face off first and started working on his upper body.

“You gonna tell me what you’re here for?” Gavin asked.

“Does the reason particularly matter at this moment?” The mage asked in return.

Gavin scoffed. The nerve of this man. “I thought you’d still be holed up at your sorcerer get together or something.”

“I got bored, so I left. Connor will forgive me. As he always does.”

That was only because Connor had a soft spot for his little brother. Gavin had met with him enough to know that Connor often let his brother get away with things and Niles Arkay most certainly took advantage of it as much as he could without tipping the awkward balance between them.

Gavin looked over his shoulder at the mage as he finished drying off. “So you decided to pay little old me a visit, Nines?”

The mage’s mouth twitched at the moniker. He’d repeatedly told Gavin that he preferred to be called by his birth name over the alias he’d been given, but Gavin was an asshole. So he just stuck with the alias instead. After he’d shown Nines that he wasn’t going to be deterred, the mage simply put up with it, even though he still often voiced his displeasure.

“I could leave again if I’m inconveniencing you in any way,” Nines bit out.

“I’m already getting dressed.” Gavin grabbed his pants and shook them out to prove his point. “Unless you’re gonna get undressed and join me in the water. You always look so stuffy.”

Nines’ overcoat was always buttoned up, covering most of his neck. “I’m not going to join you in waters such as these.”

Gavin picked his shirt up and turned to Nines. “Then you’ll join me elsewhere?”

“That depends. What’s your status right now?”

“Fresh off a contract. You stalked me at just the right moment,” Gavin said with a smirk before he lifted his shirt up. As he pulled it over his head, Gavin heard the familiar crackling sound again. “Fuck, can’t we just walk there?”

Nines’ face came back into view, a sleek eyebrow raised at Gavin as the whirling teleportation magic appeared behind him. “You’d rather walk several days when we could get there instantaneously?”

Gavin gathered his belongings and held onto his shoes. There was no reason for him to put them on anymore. They’d teleport right into Nines’ house with the spell. This way he could also track wet sand over the clean floors. “Yeah, yeah, let’s get going.”

Teleportation magic always fucked with his head. Gavin preferred not to use it at all, but Nines always dragged him along when they were together. He was slowly getting more used to it over the years, but it still wreaked havoc on his senses. When Gavin stepped in, it was like the world was swallowed around him, everything narrowing down for an instant, before it exploded outwards again. A hand grabbed his elbow to stabilise him as his body almost pitched forward. All those fancy senses and he couldn’t even step out of a teleportation spell without feeling off balance.

It was just a testament to how well the mage knew him that Nines pulled his hand away right as Gavin’s body settled again.

They separated from each other, Nines going off towards his study while Gavin went to the bedroom. He noted with a smirk that he was leaving behind clumps of wet sand and other debris as he walked. Nines was a very meticulous person and didn’t like things to be out of place or dirty, always immediately tidying up after himself, whereas Gavin didn’t really give a fuck. He chalked it up to the fact that he travelled often and that was anything but clean.

He set his belongings down on top of the dressoir in Nines’ room. His boots went down next to the door and his weapons were placed in reach of what Gavin had dubbed his side of the bed whenever he came over. The bedroom itself was very utilitarian, filled with only the bare necessities. Nines really only ever used it to sleep and, even then, he didn’t always sleep at home. Often he was out on Jericho business in other places on the continent.

Gavin came over every once in a while, but always only if Nines was here. With the sorcerer absent, the wide world outside held more appeal than a cushy house. 

Knowing that the area was well protected with magic, Gavin left his weapons behind in search of Nines.

When he got to the study, Gavin spotted Nines standing by his desk and looking down at a map of the continent. Gavin crossed his arms, leaning against the doorway. “What’re you looking for?”

“I’m simply pondering,” Nines said, looking up at Gavin with his steel grey eyes.

“Anything to do with your merry get together?” Gavin knew that the leaders of Jericho met semi-regularly, but he’d heard rumours that this meeting in particular had called in all of their members.

Nines nodded as he marked something down on the map. “In part.”

It grated at Gavin how closed off Nines was being. Normally he wouldn’t really make a big deal out of it, but clearly there was something weighing on the mage’s mind.

Their… acquaintance had grown enough over the past few years that Gavin knew the different tells that Nines had. For one, Nines was shuffling around, shifting his weight from one leg to the other. Not only that, but he was scratching at the charcoal stick, slowly wearing the substance down which made the tip of his finger black and small fragments to fall on the table.

Gavin stepped further into the room until he was across the desk from Nines. There were at least seven or eight places marked on the map, all within relative distance of each other. A series of events, most likely all connected in some way. There were other small groupings similar to the ones Nines was adding right now.

“If you were so bored at the meeting, then why are you continuing work based off of it?” Gavin asked. He felt Nines’ eyes on him and he looked up, meeting that grey gaze. “And why did you stalk me if you were going to work?”

Nines furrowed his brows again before he set the piece of charcoal he’d been using aside. “It wasn’t my intention to spend any time on this.”

Gavin walked around the desk to join Nines. Having the table in between them wasn’t really helping for what Gavin had in mind. The mage immediately straightened and turned to face him when he got close. “Then let’s do whatever you had in mind when you came to find me.”

“Perhaps in a few hours. Now that I’m looking at this, my mind keeps going back to it,” Nines said.

“We both know what you’d rather do, Nines.” Gavin placed a hand on the back of Nines’ neck and was about to pull him down when the mage grabbed his wrist with a frown. “Look, if you’re going to complain-”

“Anti-mage sentiment has been growing as of late,” Nines said.

Gavin scowled. He wasn’t sure what this had to do with anything. “Welcome to the club. Now you know how it feels.”

Nines shook his head, squeezing Gavin’s wrist in warning. “I’m serious, Gavin. More and more reports have flooded in to Jericho in regards to property damages, harm to mages, and even death threats and murder.”

Now Gavin realized what the meeting of sorcerers at Jericho had been about. Now he knew why there was a map spread out on Nines’ desk. No wonder it was weighing on his mind. With how many marks there were on the map, it really couldn’t be seen as isolated incidents anymore.

“There’s nothing you can do about it from here,” Gavin said, scratching the back of Nines’ neck.

The mage sighed, but relaxed ever so slightly at the touch. “That’s the problem. We have to find a way to deal with it and keep our people safe.”

“Then you should’ve stayed at the damn meeting.” Gavin had never seen Nines this worried about something before, but it made sense. These were his people he was talking about. His closest friends. His brother. Gavin would imagine that he’d be the same way if his fellow Witchers were facing a similar threat.

“You should’ve heard them. Bickering like students over which ingredients to use in a love potion. North kept saying that we had to start taking preventative action and Josh was constantly pushing against all of her ideas while Markus simply watched them. I saw the look on Connor’s face too. He always has ideas or at the very least a suggestion that often leads us in the right direction, but not this time. He just looked so lost.”

“C’mere.” He tugged at Nines again and this time the mage let himself be pulled down to Gavin’s level. “I’ll help you drown it out. We’ll drown it out for now, Niles,” Gavin whispered. There was an instant sag in the mage’s posture when Gavin used his birth name. “Together, Niles.”

In almost an instant, Niles completely relaxed against Gavin’s hold. How just a few words and touches could affect such a powerful and stoic mage was always beyond Gavin. Not only that, but there was also the fact that Niles was so willing to let Gavin get so close to him. Put his hands so close to his neck. The hands that had hurt and killed so many over his tenure as a Witcher, some of those acts taking place right before Niles’ own eyes. He knew what Gavin’s hands could do.

Yet, it was with little fanfare that Niles tilted his head and pressed a soft kiss against Gavin’s wrist. “Together, then.”

Their lips met, Gavin needing to push up into the kiss to close the gap in their heights. It only took a swift swipe of Gavin’s tongue for Niles to surge forward, pressing the Witcher against the table. The kiss deepened as Gavin squeezed the back of Niles’ neck.

This was a dance they’d been doing for years. They knew each other's tells well enough that it didn’t take long before Gavin started tugging on Niles’ coat to pull him out of the study and across the house to the bedroom.

\--

Physical exertion always left an ache, but there was only one that left behind an ache that made Gavin want to curl up in bed for hours on end. Generally, he didn’t indulge in the feeling. There was always work to be done, always more contracts to take and monsters to kill.

Not this time though. This time he had the luxury to be able to stay in bed.

And not just in any bed.

Niles’ bed.

Niles’ ridiculously large bed that had no right to be as comfortable as it was. Gavin was half convinced that Niles cast some sort of spell on it to make it comfortable. However, the mage deflected, claiming the only magic at work was Gavin’s lack of standards and habitual sleeping on the cold, hard ground.

While it was true that Gavin didn’t often sleep in a bed, he never really found himself wanting for one. Sleeping on the ground on his bedroll was more than enough. He’d slept in pretty rough places in his lifetime and he was used to it.

Except that Niles’ bed was actually very nice. Nice enough, in fact, that it might be the only bed Gavin ever stayed in for longer than necessary. 

He opened his eyes and took stock of the room. It was already dark, which meant that they’d slept through dinner. Gavin wasn’t necessarily hungry, so he didn’t mind. He turned onto his side to look at his bedmate. With such a large bed, they still managed to stay close to each other, even though neither of them were used to sleeping with someone else besides the few times that they came together like this.

Niles slept on his stomach, his arms crossed under the pillow with his head turned away from Gavin. From the way he was breathing, Gavin could tell that the mage was still asleep. That made sense. He’d been under a lot of stress when he came searching for Gavin.

It was better for him to sleep as much of it off before he had to wake up and face his problems again.

With his enhanced vision, Gavin clearly saw Niles’ shoulder blades peeking out from under the covers. There were red marks there now, left behind from when Gavin’s nails scraped over them earlier. They stood out against Niles’ pale skin. Gavin had seen Niles’ body and he knew just how unblemished it was.

Not like Gavin’s. He was covered in scars. Burn marks, sword wounds, bites, places where chunks of his flesh had been torn out. No part of his body was spared, not even his face. There was the scar over his brow and the scar over the bridge of his nose. The latter was one of the first that he’d gotten, sustained during the start of his training.

Whereas Gavin spent almost his entire life with weapons in his hands, Niles grew up to be an academic, and later moved on to study magic.

Drastically different lives that still found a way to bring them together.

Gavin reached out and ran a finger along one of the red marks over Niles’ shoulder blade. It was raised and felt warmer than the surrounding skin, displaying just how hard Gavin had raked his nails. It was an interesting sensation against a scar on the edge of Gavin’s fingertip. It was a numb area, but he could still feel from the skin around it how the scar trailed over Niles’ skin.

He rested his hand over Niles’ spine. Niles’ back was soft and pale against Gavin’s heavily calloused and scarred hand, complexion darkened by a consistent exposure to the sun.

His palms no doubt felt rough against Niles’ skin, all of the calluses and scars leaving an uneven track every time Gavin touched Niles. The mage never complained anymore. When they first started spending time together like this, he’d make snarky remarks here and there about how Gavin didn’t care for his hands as well as he should, considering they were essential to his trade.

Gavin trailed his hand lower, pushing the covers aside so he could settle his hand in the middle of Niles’ back instead. As it trailed to a stop, Gavin felt Niles’ breathing change. He hadn’t meant to wake the mage up with his idle exploration, but he wasn’t about to stop just because Niles started to stir.

Niles mumbled under his breath and the candles around the room all lit up at the same time. The sudden light stung for a moment, but Gavin’s eyes quickly adjusted. Now he was better able to see the difference in their skin tone and just how marred his hand was in comparison.

“Don’t stop on account of me waking up,” Niles said, shifting to push up against Gavin’s hand.

Gavin scoffed. “It was better when you were asleep.”

“Because I was unsuspecting under your hand?”

The words sent a jolt through Gavin and he pulled his hand away at the implication the question held.

Almost immediately, Niles’ hand shot out from under the pillow and grabbed Gavin’s arm before he could pull away fully. “I never told you to leave.” Niles turned his head so he was facing Gavin. The cheek that had been pressed against the pillow had sleep lines from the fabric and Niles’ hair was in disarray.

Gavin’s hand twitched in Niles’ hold. It wasn’t a tight grip, so Gavin could very easily pull away if he wanted to, but he held his breath for a few seconds before exhaling. “It wasn’t anything untoward.”

“I know it wasn’t.” Niles’ brows furrowed as he spoke, his mind likely catching up with what he’d said. “I never meant to make it sound that way.”

“I’d never do that,” Gavin insisted.

Niles sighed softly. “I know. However, for the record, know that I’m open to anything.” He pushed himself up so he could lean forward and kiss Gavin’s fingertips.

Gavin didn’t say anything in response. Neither of them were the type to sit down and talk about something like this in depth. It was either a yes or no and that was good enough for the both of them.

A soft nip on his palm accompanied by piercing grey eyes made Gavin pull his hand away. Niles let him go and Gavin made a split second decision to tug Niles’ hand along with him. After all the introspection that he’d done before, Gavin realized that he’d never taken the time to really look at the mage’s hands.

Upon first glance Gavin could tell that they were just as unblemished as the rest of his body. There were still faint traces of charcoal on his fingers, but other than that there was nothing. No calluses, not even the smallest of scars. It was actually a little surprising. Niles did a lot of things with his hands as well and even though it was nothing labour intensive, Gavin half expected there to be _something_.

After all, he knew what these hands could do. Gavin had seen it first hand when they fought side by side a few years ago in a war. The destructive power that they were the conduit to. The hands that directed magic that had wiped out nine military companies with one fell swoop.

The hands that earned Niles the moniker of Nines.

“You’re lost in thought. I’m not quite sure if I should take that as a bad or a good thing.” Niles was sitting up now.

“Just wondering why you trust me to touch you,” Gavin said to cover up his thoughts. If he wasn’t being an asshole, then he was being self-deprecating. Both were good ways to avoid what was really on his mind.

“Is this a train of thought that you’ve had before? It would seem out of place for you to question this after our many encounters over the years,” Niles said, straight faced as he almost always was.

Gavin looked away from Niles, even though he could still feel those grey eyes on him. “Like people haven’t warned you off of me before.”

He heard Niles hum under his breath. “True. Connor has often opened up a line of questioning as to why I would spend intimate time with you.”

“You don’t have to make it sound so stiff, _Nines_ ,” Gavin snapped. He dropped the mage’s hand and moved back. Luckily, the bed was so big that he didn’t even have to get out of it to put distance between them.

“My apologies. Connor has questioned me quite a few times why we fuck.”

“That’s just you saying the same thing twice.”

“While crude, it is the exact opposite of what you call _stiff_ ,” he said.

Gavin ran a hand over his face, a scowl quickly settling on his lips when he felt a rough callus brush against his cheekbone. “I could kill you at least sixteen different ways right now and I wouldn’t even have to reach for any of my weapons.”

There was a soft chuckle. “I could kill you without having to use any weapons whatsoever. What is your point, Gavin?”

His ears were ringing at every word spoken, getting louder and louder each time. The pleasurable ache disappeared, now making way for prickling under his skin. Gavin could feel everything around him. Feel Niles’ presence close by. Feel the small flames flickering on all of the candles. Feel the tightening inside his own chest.

Gavin spent almost an hour trying to get away from all of this earlier today. He wasn’t supposed to feel like this anymore and especially not here. He wasn’t supposed to feel like an exposed raw nerve. This feeling never came when he was talking to someone. It hadn’t ever happened like this before.

When Niles shifted next to him, Gavin flinched as if he had been struck. Every sense was on high. Everything was on alert, ready, just waiting to jerk into action.

“Let’s take a bath, Gavin.” Even Niles’ soft words felt like they were lashing out at him. Gavin pulled his legs up against his chest and pressed his face against his knees. It was such a vulnerable position, even with every sense alight. “I’ll go run it.”

Niles left the room, but Gavin didn’t hear the door close behind him. Was he giving Gavin a way to leave if he wanted to? It was hard to know with Niles; the mage could be hard to read, even to Gavin. They never talked about this. Just that there were no expectations beyond what each of them wanted to give.

Could Gavin even bring himself to leave now? No. Where would he even go? The nearest town was at least a two hour walk away and Gavin knew that Niles’ water source ran somewhere underneath the tower. It was better to stay if Niles was drawing a bath. Niles’ bath was big too, just like his bed. Both unnecessary for a mage that spent most of his time either alone or out in the world.

Then again, a lot of what Niles did was unnecessary. Like drawing the bath. Gavin didn’t need it right now. He was a Witcher. He was trained to deal with high stress, because that’s what this was. It had to be.

Meditation would work to calm him down. If Gavin meditated in this room, then Niles wouldn’t disturb him.

Niles who always watched silently. Niles who sought him out today. Niles who was drawing a bath for him.

“Fuck,” Gavin hissed out. Why did this have to happen now?

“Gavin. The bath is ready. Would you like me to help you to the bathroom?” Niles asked.

“No! _No_.” Gavin didn’t need help. He could damn well walk by himself. He climbed off of the bed and briskly walked towards the bathroom, twisting his body as he walked by Niles so they wouldn’t brush against each other.

The extra stimulation wasn’t something Gavin thought he could deal with right now.

When he got into the bathroom, Gavin eagerly climbed into the bath, not even taking a breath before he submerged himself and closed his eyes. It wasn’t an instant relief, but the world did shrink around him. While he could feel Niles in the room, the water muted and softened the razor edge of his senses. Slowly, the hyperfocus ebbed.

His lungs burned after a while, but Gavin pushed through it. He’d go up when he absolutely had to and no sooner. His body jerked as he kept himself under the water. Just a little while longer.

When a hand wrapped around his bicep, Gavin couldn’t bring himself to fight against it. He was pulled up and Gavin instinctively gasped in a lungful of air. Almost immediately after, he started coughing. The hand guided him to the edge of the tub so Gavin could lean against it instead of slipping back bonelessly into the water.

“You were under there for several minutes. I wasn’t aware that you had a death wish,” Niles hissed out, his tone indicating just how angry he was.

Gavin looked up at Niles, having to blink and shake his head to get rid of the water dripping onto his face. “I don’t.”

“Consider me not convinced. Even Witchers have limits. Why are you pushing yours?” Niles’ brows were furrowed and the corners of his mouth were turned down.

Gavin let out a ragged laugh. “You worried about me or something?”

“You foolish man,” Niles said. He shook his head and got up. For a second Gavin thought that Niles was going to leave. It was well in his right to do so, after all. Except the mage surprised him by climbing into the bath instead.

Niles settled down behind Gavin and tugged on his bicep. Gavin hesitated for a second before he let himself be pulled back. A shudder went through Gavin as his back pressed against Niles’ chest. It wasn’t as sharp as before, but an uncomfortable thrum still roiled under his skin.

Pale arms wrapped around him to hold him in place. A soft kiss was pressed against the nape of his neck.

“I’ll help you drown it out. We’ll drown it out, Gavin,” Niles whispered right next to Gavin’s ear. The exact same words that Gavin had spoken hours before.

Gavin let his head fall back against Niles’ shoulder. He could see those grey eyes looking at him from his periphery. “Together?” Gavin asked softly.

“Yes. Together,” Niles promised with a kiss to Gavin’s temple.

**Author's Note:**

> I received amazing fanart of Mage Niles from the lovely Mellondrops, which you can see [here](https://twitter.com/mellondrops00/status/1084496386895290369). Please go check it out!


End file.
